3 minute read
Trainer and jockey quotes after Larkspur Run claims the Group 3 The Hong Kong Jockey Club Stakes at Flemington on Tuesday.
Race Result:
1st: Larkspur Run (Ms Jamie Kah/James Cummings) - $16
2nd: Literary Magnate (Dean Yendall/Matthew Williams) - $5.50F
3rd: Mac 'N' Cheese (Hugh Bowman/Tony & Calvin McEvoy) - $41
Winning Time: 1:26.07 Last 600m: N/A
Margins: ¾L x Short ½ Head
"A wall of mares, they won't get her!"
— Racing.com (@Racing) November 1, 2022
Larkspur Run takes out the @HKJC_Racing Stakes @godolphin @jamieleekah07 pic.twitter.com/LkvnvmL2Ur
Winning Trainer: James Cummings
"She's quite deserving of it. I had a good feeling that Jamie Kah would have a good day today - she's got a nice ride for us in the last.
"I think she put her in the right spot and enabled the horse to show her toughness.
"That's great for the farm. That leads to Larkspur Run being a new stakes winner for Darley.
"I know she was wide with cover, Jamie Kah on the horse, but I liked the ride and Dominic Beirne and I talked about the horse sitting out wide and enabling her to get out to the right lane at the right time.
"She's a tough mare. Very fit. I'd given her enough runs including a run two ago on a very heavy track that I didn't sway from at Randwick and her toughness prevailed in a really strong finish over 1400 metres.
"It is only the fourth time I've brought her to this distance but she looked like 1400 metres would suit her on her last run in the Black Pearl at Geelong, and the ground was firm then.
"This ground suited her a lot better and it showed her to nice effect."
Winning Jockey: Jamie Kah
"It was a great run. I just didn't think she'd handle the firm surface. When the track came up like it did today I thought it would be perfect for her.
"I wasn't where I wanted to be in the run. I wanted to be back a little bit just to get some cover on her but she was really tough.
"I thought she might float a bit when she hit the front but she was never in doubt today.
Future: "She's improved a lot mentally. I think she just wants a bit of give in the ground. She's got quite a rough little action on her so I think today was fantastic so keep her on the soft ground."
On Smokin Romans in the Cup: "I was really proud of him. He got taken on early and that just told late. I couldn't be happier with him and he tried his heart out."
